Ebook: Physical Methods in Agriculture: Approach to Precision and Quality

The frrst attempts to use physical methods in agriculture can be found in nineteenth century as a necessary component of farm and food machinery. There were mechanics, electricity and physical chemistry that were the first physical disciplines used in agriculture and food industry. In the same time period the studies on physical properties of soils started to be one of main topics of soil science. The twentieth century was a century of research on physical properties of agromaterials. The physical properties of agromaterials have been studied e. g. in the USA, where a big role has been played by ASAE (1907), and in the Soviet Union where the special Institute of Agrophysics was founded (1932) by Academician Ioffe. The ASAE's activity was enlarged in 1960s and 1970s, especially with the role playing by the Mohsenin's group and its followers. At that time the Institute of Agrophysics of Polish Academy of Sciences was founded in Lublin and conferences on physical methods in agriculture began to be organised. The participants of the last conference - "Physical Methods in Agriculture - Approach to Precision and Quality", held on August 27-30, 2001, have prepared the basis for this book. Part of the conference participants decided to enlarge their conference papers to be more general and more instructive in relation to further development of the science. New papers prepared under this deciSion were reviewed, discussed and revised, repeatedly, to be presented in this book.

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The papers in this book deal with both the physical theories and their applications in the full broad range of agriculture: soils, their parameters and transport processes, soil technology, precision agriculture, agricultural products and their processing, testing and storage and products, genetic modification of agricultural plants. In all those subjects the physical aspects are studied. The majority of the papers belong to the category of interdisciplinary sciences. The papers are divided into three groups. In the first group are papers dealing with soil physical properties. The research was aimed at direct observation of soil porous systems from which the appropriate theory of transport was derived. Special attention was paid to estimation errors of physical parameters. High accuracy in determination of data monitoring location is reflected by papers on allocation agriculture, precision farming. The second group contains papers with experimental and theoretical improvement in product properties knowledge. The possibilities of application of such methods in modern genetic engineering are discussed too. The third group of papers represents recent physical approach to technological properties of fruits, especially in relation to their pre-harvest and storage softening, as well as to their susceptibility to damage.

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The papers in this book deal with both the physical theories and their applications in the full broad range of agriculture: soils, their parameters and transport processes, soil technology, precision agriculture, agricultural products and their processing, testing and storage and products, genetic modification of agricultural plants. In all those subjects the physical aspects are studied. The majority of the papers belong to the category of interdisciplinary sciences. The papers are divided into three groups. In the first group are papers dealing with soil physical properties. The research was aimed at direct observation of soil porous systems from which the appropriate theory of transport was derived. Special attention was paid to estimation errors of physical parameters. High accuracy in determination of data monitoring location is reflected by papers on allocation agriculture, precision farming. The second group contains papers with experimental and theoretical improvement in product properties knowledge. The possibilities of application of such methods in modern genetic engineering are discussed too. The third group of papers represents recent physical approach to technological properties of fruits, especially in relation to their pre-harvest and storage softening, as well as to their susceptibility to damage.
Content:
Front Matter....Pages i-xvii
On Precision and Quality....Pages 1-10
Front Matter....Pages 11-11
Image Analysis and Microscopic Techniques to Characterize Soil Pore System....Pages 13-38
The Horizontal Hydraulic Conductivity of Vertical Interaggregate Capillary Cracks in Clay Soils....Pages 39-50
Estimation Error in Statistical Distribution....Pages 51-59
The Influence of Tillage Methods on the Infiltration in Soil....Pages 61-81
Bifacial PV Modules in Solar Trackers and Concentrators....Pages 83-104
Precision Farming - A Multidisciplinary Approach for Cereal Production....Pages 105-118
Monitoring Frost Injury to Winter Crops....Pages 119-133
Front Matter....Pages 135-135
Stress Relaxation in Potato....Pages 137-155
Determination of Hen’s Eggshell Elastic Properties under Quasistatic Compression....Pages 157-165
The Cracking Mechanisms of Grain Legume....Pages 167-194
Properties of Grain for Silo Strength Calculation....Pages 195-217
Digital Image Analysis — Essence and Application in Cereal Science....Pages 219-240
Thermal Conductivity of Macaroni Products....Pages 241-256
Transgenosis for Changes of Physical Properties of Plants and Plant Products....Pages 257-280
Novel Agricultural Materials for Food and Feed. The Transgenic Crops: From Cereals to Potato....Pages 281-308
Front Matter....Pages 309-309
Physical Properties of Fruit Firmness and Chemical Structure of Cell Walls during Fruit Softening....Pages 311-341
Firmness and Softening of Fruits and Vegetables....Pages 343-357
Determination of a Drop Damage Index to Estimate Bruising Susceptibility of Apple Royal Gala by Logistic Model....Pages 359-374
Color as a Quality Factor of Fruits and Vegetables....Pages 375-397
Front Matter....Pages 309-309
Uncertainty of Measurements of the Fruit Impacts....Pages 399-409
Thermal Imaging....Pages 411-427
Sensing Taste Attributes of Plums Using Near Infrared (NIR) Reflectance Spectroscopy....Pages 429-439
Back Matter....Pages 441-454

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The papers in this book deal with both the physical theories and their applications in the full broad range of agriculture: soils, their parameters and transport processes, soil technology, precision agriculture, agricultural products and their processing, testing and storage and products, genetic modification of agricultural plants. In all those subjects the physical aspects are studied. The majority of the papers belong to the category of interdisciplinary sciences. The papers are divided into three groups. In the first group are papers dealing with soil physical properties. The research was aimed at direct observation of soil porous systems from which the appropriate theory of transport was derived. Special attention was paid to estimation errors of physical parameters. High accuracy in determination of data monitoring location is reflected by papers on allocation agriculture, precision farming. The second group contains papers with experimental and theoretical improvement in product properties knowledge. The possibilities of application of such methods in modern genetic engineering are discussed too. The third group of papers represents recent physical approach to technological properties of fruits, especially in relation to their pre-harvest and storage softening, as well as to their susceptibility to damage.
Content:
Front Matter....Pages i-xvii
On Precision and Quality....Pages 1-10
Front Matter....Pages 11-11
Image Analysis and Microscopic Techniques to Characterize Soil Pore System....Pages 13-38
The Horizontal Hydraulic Conductivity of Vertical Interaggregate Capillary Cracks in Clay Soils....Pages 39-50
Estimation Error in Statistical Distribution....Pages 51-59
The Influence of Tillage Methods on the Infiltration in Soil....Pages 61-81
Bifacial PV Modules in Solar Trackers and Concentrators....Pages 83-104
Precision Farming - A Multidisciplinary Approach for Cereal Production....Pages 105-118
Monitoring Frost Injury to Winter Crops....Pages 119-133
Front Matter....Pages 135-135
Stress Relaxation in Potato....Pages 137-155
Determination of Hen’s Eggshell Elastic Properties under Quasistatic Compression....Pages 157-165
The Cracking Mechanisms of Grain Legume....Pages 167-194
Properties of Grain for Silo Strength Calculation....Pages 195-217
Digital Image Analysis — Essence and Application in Cereal Science....Pages 219-240
Thermal Conductivity of Macaroni Products....Pages 241-256
Transgenosis for Changes of Physical Properties of Plants and Plant Products....Pages 257-280
Novel Agricultural Materials for Food and Feed. The Transgenic Crops: From Cereals to Potato....Pages 281-308
Front Matter....Pages 309-309
Physical Properties of Fruit Firmness and Chemical Structure of Cell Walls during Fruit Softening....Pages 311-341
Firmness and Softening of Fruits and Vegetables....Pages 343-357
Determination of a Drop Damage Index to Estimate Bruising Susceptibility of Apple Royal Gala by Logistic Model....Pages 359-374
Color as a Quality Factor of Fruits and Vegetables....Pages 375-397
Front Matter....Pages 309-309
Uncertainty of Measurements of the Fruit Impacts....Pages 399-409
Thermal Imaging....Pages 411-427
Sensing Taste Attributes of Plums Using Near Infrared (NIR) Reflectance Spectroscopy....Pages 429-439
Back Matter....Pages 441-454
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